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Elmira College reaches out to the community

Bob Jamieson
Published 7:35 p.m. ET March 2, 2014

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Mark Woodhouse and Jan Kather flank one of the two Auguste Rodin sculptures that belong to Elmira College and are displayed in the Gannett-Tripp Library. Woodhouse is technical services director and archivist while Kather is a media artist at the school.
(Photo:
BOB JAMIESON / STAFF PHOTO
)

ELMIRA – Arts Alive is more than a monthlong series of free events at Elmira College; it may just be the ambassador for a stronger relationship between the city campus and surrounding community.

Throughout March, the spotlight is on painting, sculpture, music, fiber, film, theater, lectures and more presented by faculty, students and guest artists at the private liberal-arts college. There are 51 events over 31 days, and it began Saturday with 11 events, including several in which people of all ages could try their hands at various types of art, aided by students and faculty.

“What better way than to offer free events that would be for the entire family?

“For the kickoff, we made sure anybody of any age could come and find something of interest to do,” said Kather, of Elmira Heights.

The opening weekend included music students from Elmira’s two high schools. Other events included open studio tours in painting, ceramics and sculpture in Fassett Hall, hands-on art activities in Kolker Hall, three concerts, a dance performance and a gallery talk.

“A lot of the community said, ‘We didn’t know you had all this here,’” said Chris Longwell, an art lecturer who runs the George Waters Gallery on campus, of last year’s inaugural event. “They were really happy they were invited in to have a look what it is like inside the building and what goes on in there.”

Guest artists are among featured performers. Among them: Tuesday’s appearance by Mel Chin, who is described as an unconventional and politically engaged visual artist who created “Revival Fields,” sculpted gardens that draw heavy metals from contaminated areas; on March 26, a poetry reading by Tish Pearlman, host and producer of the public radio show Out of Bounds; and a March 13-17 exhibit of more than 80 contemporary art quilts by Jack Walsh.

A committee of more than 20 students, faculty and staff put the program together. Kather credits EC senior Jamieson Riling, a double art major from Olean, with planting the idea that grew into the arts celebration.

Riling wanted an exhibition of new student work to be competitive, as it is for professional artists, rather than automatic. He said he brought his idea to Kather and Longwell in the fall 2012.

“The three of us built this very rough idea of a month in March to give the arts more of a voice on campus,” said Riling, adding he took the idea to Champagne’s wife, Ruth, who embraced it and quickly relayed it to the college president.

“It’s many more times what I could have imagined,” Riling said of the event’s development.

At 11:30 a.m. March 12, he will lead a discussion in the Gannett-Tripp Library of how gender and race were represented in American art during the first half of the 20th century.

Senior Christina Nurczynski, of Owego, has watercolor and ink drawings that will be included in a juried student art show in the Gannett-Tripp Library as part of the event. Prior to Arts Alive, she said she felt art students were tucked away on the campus.

“Everyone wants to be acknowledged for their work or what they contribute on campus,” she said.

“It just felt like a lot of attention was on the athletes and the business majors.”

scheduleGo to elmira.edu and click on the link to Arts Alive Program on the homepage to view all scheduled events.